Swedish statement at the 76th UNGA First Committee General Debate

Chair,

During the current session of the UN General Assembly First Committee we have heard numerous delegations express concern over the state of international affairs. The deteriorating security environment, the increased polarization and lack of trust among states is evident. The continued erosion of the respect for international law, multilateralism and a rules-based international order has had a negative impact on the global arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation architecture – an essential foundation for our common security.

Major global challenges can only be addressed successfully by working together in partnership with others. Multilateralism and multilateral cooperation have a central place in these efforts and the UN should remain at its core. The international community has a collective responsibility to ensure the continued functioning, relevance and integrity of the disarmament machinery. Any attempts, including during this First Committee session, to undermine international bodies must be met with a strong and collective response. Sweden calls on all states to uphold international norms, implement their obligations and commitments and work towards restoring dialogue and engage in confidence building measures.

Chair,

A holistic approach to global security challenges is important. The UN Secretary General’s Agenda for Disarmament aims to do just that – to put disarmament and non-proliferation in a wider perspective that is suited for the complex, international security environment of today – and a message being reinforced in his recent report Our Common Agenda. The connection made with Agenda 2030 and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG:s) can help break silos and put our common issues in a broader context.

As a Champion for i) promoting dialogue for nuclear disarmament and ii) promoting the full and effective participation of women in decision making processes and multilateral disarmament platforms, Sweden has continued to focus on paving the way for common ground ahead of the 10th Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) – not least through the Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament.

As part of the Swedish Feminist Foreign Policy it is our strong conviction that the full and equal participation of women and men is essential in all aspects of arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation. Applying a gender equality perspective to our collective work will help improve its functioning and strengthen international peace and security, while making it more durable.

We are encouraged by the increasing number of resolutions within the First Committee that includes a gender perspective. In this regard, we also welcome the UN:s active role and concrete steps, including by presenting gender-disaggregated data, promoting gender equal participation in the disarmament work and promoting the incorporation of gender perspectives into policies. The work of the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) as a stand-alone, autonomous institution producing high-quality research, which regularly highlights gender perspectives, is very positive.

Chair,

Despite our best efforts, State cannot achieve all that we set out to do alone. Representatives of civil society, academia and industry are all part of an important pillar of the arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation architecture. These representatives help raise awareness, provide ideas, and push our work towards meaningful action that contributes to movement in the right direction - a direction towards a more peaceful and secure world, free of nuclear weapons. We must not let the pandemic become a pretext for restricting their continued participation. Dialogue and cooperation with civil society is central both inside and outside the UN and States carry a common responsibility to do what we can to curb the shrinkage of civil society space.

I thank you.